ASU women’s tennis looks to make history as NCAA Tournament begins

TEMPE – It’s easy for coaches and players to talk about culture from the inside of a program. That talk gains credibility when the same view exists from the outside. In the case of the 2025-26 ASU women’s tennis team, that credibility comes from none other than former coach Sheila McInerney, who coached the Sun Devils for 40 seasons, from 1984-2024.

Under McInerney’s guidance, the Sun Devils made 36 consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances. She was twice named Pac-12 Coach of the Year and she reached the NCAA Sweet 16 18 times. McInerney attended every one of the team’s home matches as a fan this season and noted how, even from the stands, she could see how close this team was.

“They’re a super group of kids,” McInerney said. “They’re very good students, they carry themselves very well on and off the court. I think they get along very well as a team and I think you can tell just watching them play.

” Under second-year coach Jamea Jackson, the team has the chance to do something the program has not seen in a quarter century. When the No. 15 Sun Devils face Denver in the first round of the NCAA Tournament at the Whiteman Tennis Center in Tempe at 1 p.